Someone snaps at you. Interrupts. Rolls their eyes. The moment is small—but it lingers. You carry it longer than you’d like.

The Stoics understood this well. As Marcus Aurelius wrote:

“Whenever you are offended at someone’s fault, turn to yourself and consider whether you too have such faults.”

The first move isn’t outward. It’s inward.

Stoicism doesn’t excuse bad behavior—it just refuses to let it take your peace. You can recognize a wrong without mirroring it. You can set a boundary without bitterness.

Someone else’s rudeness doesn’t have to become your mood.

“The best revenge is not to be like your enemy.” — Marcus Aurelius

So: pause. Breathe. Ask yourself—what’s in my control here?

Your tone. Your posture. Your next choice.

Let the other person carry their own state. You don’t have to pick it up.